


We joined up in a rich man’s war when we knew it was a poor man’s fight.

by KingsOnThrones



Series: Sleep deprivated fanfic's that make no sense whatsoever [15]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Medieval, Emperor Tony Stark, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, James "Rhodey" Rhodes - mentioned - Freeform, M/M, Magic, POV Alternating, Steve Rogers - mentioned - Freeform, Steve Rogers as the Winter Soldier, Winter Soldier Bucky Barnes, ish
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-25
Updated: 2020-01-25
Packaged: 2021-02-27 12:47:29
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,115
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22407460
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KingsOnThrones/pseuds/KingsOnThrones
Summary: Tony is the young Emperor of the Iron Desert after his father – the late Emperor – died, four years previous. He hasn’t got a clue on how to rule an empire and does whatever his adviser and late father’s best friend – Lord Adviser Obadiah of Stane – tells him to do.The at the annual election for future marriage candidates – organized by said adviser – a commoner shows up.It all goes to shit from there. Or perhaps it all gets better. Tony hasn’t decided yet.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes & Steve Rogers, James "Bucky" Barnes/Tony Stark, James "Rhodey" Rhodes & Tony Stark
Series: Sleep deprivated fanfic's that make no sense whatsoever [15]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1538635
Comments: 4
Kudos: 67





	We joined up in a rich man’s war when we knew it was a poor man’s fight.

**Author's Note:**

> Title from Lucinda Williams’ I’m Crying (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack of Free State of Jones).  
> Though there is some debate on whether she sings: ‘Joined up in Richmond’ or ‘Joined up in a rich man’s war’. I couldn’t find the official lyrics and I clearly hear ‘Rich man’s war’ so I just went with that. If it’s inaccurate, then I came up with the title myself I guess…  
> See end-notes for more notes.

Tony wasn’t proud of all the things he’s done. So, he tried to make amends. After _months_ of begging and pleading Obie had finally allowed commoners to be present at the annual election for his future spouse. Not that they had any chance of being picked of course, but at least they could _hope_ they would. It was a small compensation. Too small. But it was all Tony could do.

Sure, he was the Emperor. But power, he had none. It was for the best though. He wasn’t suitable to rule an empire. Traditions and stuff prevented him from resigning his post over to more qualified people. So, he remained Emperor in name, but left the actual ruling over to Obie. He’d been his father’s adviser too. He had _decades_ of experience with ruling and politics, Tony had _none_. The Iron Empire was better of in the hands of Obie.

But that Tony didn’t hold actual power, didn’t mean that he got a free pass on royal duties. In fact, Tony had so many royal duties he hardly had time for anything else. None of them were fun. But today’s – today’ royal duties were by far the worst.

 _The annual election for candidates who might become his future spouse_.

The idea was that each year Tony would pick three candidates out of a group of privileged people from all over the world chosen by Obie. Tony would spend the next year surrounded by the three chosen ones and in an ideal situation he would choose his bride by the end of the year. In an even more ideal situation, that spouse would be a woman, but it there was no law against choosing someone else. Though there was a _tradition_ against it. There hadn’t been a same-sex royal marriage in the Iron Desert for many generations. Traditions were valued highly in the empire. Too high, in Tony’s opinion.

So far, he’d managed to refuse all three of the candidates each year. But he wasn’t sure how much longer Obie would let him get away with that. He had been telling Tony for months now that this year he would have to choose his bride. The people were waiting, Obie claimed.

 _“. . . And you aren’t getting any younger either, Tony,”_ Obie told him over and over again. Tony didn’t know what Obie was talking about, after all, he was only 22 years old.

“Focus Your Majesty,” Vanko – the Captain of his Guards – said.

Tony blinked a couple of times; his mind must’ve wandered off. He shouldn’t lose his focus; he had a job to do.

***

The candidates were lined up for what seemed like _miles_ , because this was the first year the commoners were allowed to join in the election, and they had sure as fuck taken their chances. The Bastard who called himself 'Emperor' walked past each candidate asked for their name and where they came from. Royalty and nobility first of course.

Bucky was somewhere at the very end of the line and knew that his turn would take another few hours. But it was mere fuel for his inner fire.

He watched the Emperor get closer and closer. He scoffed at all the games, lies and deceit that existed in the upper layers of society. This election was a fucking elimination game. The Emperor talked to each person for like 2 seconds and then decided whether or not the candidates would make it to the next round. Based on _what_? That 2-second-conversation? Fuck no. The candidates were elected based upon how good they would look as the Emperor’s arm candy.

 _Fucking assholes_ , Bucky thought.

The Emperor was only two people away from him.

Only one.

The Emperor was standing in front of him.

But the bastard didn’t even have the decency to _pretend_ Bucky had a chance, didn’t even ask for his name nor where he was from and straight up said “No.” and turned his back on him.

Bucky’s fire burst.

“You wanna know how I lost the arm?”

He knew candidates weren’t supposed to speak, unless spoken to. But Bucky wasn’t here to be a candidate. Bucky was here for _revenge_ …

***

“You wanna know who I lost the arm?” Tony heard a deep and heavy accented voice ask. He froze dead in his tracks.

He looked over his shoulder and saw the one-armed man that freaked him out so much on his knees, held down by two guards. Tony was torn in two. One part wanted the scary-looking man as far away from him as possible; another part of him desperately wanted to unravel the mystery this man obviously was.

His curiosity won. It always did.

He never explicitly said so, but the man must have taken his hesitation as the ‘yes’ it ultimately was. The man threw the guards off him as if they were nothing more than a slight inconvenience. He got off his knees and took a step forward, and another. No one dared to stop him – not with _that_ look on his face.

“I lost it while fighting your wars!” The soldier took another step forward. “The surgeons said that I should thank the Gods I survived. . .”

The man took another step forward, Tony took a step back without realising it.

“. . . I cursed them instead.”

The bystanders, Tony included, let out some shocked noises. No-one would dare saying something like that, no-one would _dare_ provoking the wrath of the Gods.

“Because my arm was not the only thing I lost.”

 _No, please no_ , Tony thought, knowing what the other man was about to say.

“I lost my best friend too. My _brother_. If not in blood, then in bond. The only family or friend I had left. How, you ask?. . .”

He closed the last bit of distance between them, Tony felt his back hitting the wall and the Soldier towered over him. Not one of his guards dared to get in between him and the Warrior.

Tony never missed Rhodey as much as he did now.

“. . . Because we joined up in a rich man’s war when we knew it was a poor man’s fight.”

Being born to the heat of the deserts of the South Tony never thought he would see something _so cold_ as the Soldier’s eyes. There was no warmth and no mercy in them, only death.

“And now I’m not pretty enough for His Majesty to even waste a word on.”

Tony broke.

He sank to floor. Tears swelled in his eyes and threatened to spill. “I’m sorry,” he breathed, “I so sorry. I’m so, _so_ sorry. I never meant to hurt anyone; I didn’t mean for any of this to happen. I-I just did what Obie and Howard told me to do. I don’t know how to rule a country. I’m not a leader,” he choked on a sob,” I don’t know what I’m doing. I never meant to hurt anyone. I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, _I’m sor-_ ” he broke out in tears and he began to shake all over. Another panic-attack. Another indication of is incapability to rule, his mind was a mess, Tony was a mess.

He flinched when he felt a strong arm wrapping around his thin shoulders. He felt the rough linen shirt of the Soldier rubbing his cheek. And Tony _cried_. He cried for all the pain he caused, and he cried because he knew that the scars he felt through the man’s shirt were on him.

***

“What’s your name?” Tony asked later that day when he woke up – without remembering falling asleep nor how he got into his own bed – and he saw the Soldier sitting next to him. That honestly should have freaked him out more than it did. But then again, the Soldier was by far the most beautiful person he’d ever seen. Tony found that he wouldn’t mind waking up with that view all the time. _That_ did freak him out though. Sort of.

“James Barnes,” the man said without even sparing Tony a glance. “Though my family called me ‘Bucky’. But that was a long time ago.”

If he even knew how to talk to royalty, it was obvious he didn’t give a fuck. Tony had never seen a commoner with so much courage or _idiocy_.

“Where are you from?”

“The cold of the Mountains in the far West.”

“You’re from the Western Tribes?!” Tony sat up in surprise. No-one had heard anything from the West since it was supposedly taken over by a warrior-band called HYDRA. That was like 80 years ago.

“I used to be. Once upon a time. Now, I'm from nowhere.”

There was something dark and hallow in James eyes. It frightened Tony. But not enough to send him away.

“You know,” James broke the silence they had fallen in, “I came here to kill you. Or die while trying.”

That should really have been enough for Tony to get this guy away from him. Instead he asked: “And now?”

“No one will ever hurt or touch you again. Not on my watch.”

The hollowness in James’s eyes was replaced with fury.

“You would protect the man that killed your best friend?” Tony asked not believing a word he heard the man speak.

“You ain’t to blame for his death. I see that now.”

Tony cried again when he felt the man’s knuckles stoking his cheek. “I choose you. Will you stay?” Tony’s heart broke already over the rejection he knew was about to come.

“For as long as you’ll have me.”

***

James followed Tony like a deadly shadow. During the first meeting he had with Obie and the other advisers a few days later, Tony found some bad shit out about his advisers.

“ _You_!” Hammer – a general of his armies and one self-satisfied smug son of a bitch – said, pointing at James.

James had Hammer pinned to the wall a second later. Tony didn’t mind, he hated Hammer’s guts. The other people present did mind though and they launched themselves at James. Obie began to mutter some magic words in a strange language.

James screamed and reached for his head.

“Stop! Stop!” Tony cried, “Stop! You’re hurting him. Let him go. _Stop_!”

It was useless.

***

Bucky felt the magic flowing through his veins as it threatened to take him over entirely. He screamed as he fought and struggled to stop the words before it was too late. He searched for the speaker in a mad frenzy. When he found him, Bucky fought his way through the room and stopped the man from ever muttering another word again.

He was breathing heavily and looked at what he had done. “They’re HYDRA,” he said more to himself than to Tony. “Or HYDRA’s associates at least.”

“They’re _what_?!”

Bucky explained how HYDRA had taken over his home tribe in the West by using magic and how they used him as their weapon. How he escaped 70 years later with his best friend whom they captured and used too, kept alive thus far by magic. How they fought their way to the Iron Empire, thinking they would be safe. How they were forced to join another battle when the North attacked Tony’s Empire a year ago. He told of the battle and how Steve died a hero. He explained that he’d seen Tony’s advisers many a time in his time with HYDRA.

HYDRA wanted to expand into the Iron Empire. And Obie had been willing to help them do it.

Obie’d _betrayed_ him…

***

He and James spent the next years getting rid of what was left from HYDRA in this world. When they were done, and all the lands were free once again Tony named James _General-Lord Commander of the Iron Armies_. James turned out to be a miraculous strategist, he would be able to protect their lands.

The title was passed to Rhodey two years later. Tony had luckily been able to return him from banishment now he was Emperor not just in name. He’d never forgive himself for ever giving Stane the power to banish his Honeybear for life.

James had been given a new title too after their marriage: _Emperor of the Iron Dessert, King of the Western Mountains, Duke of the Islands to the North, His Majesty James Buchanan Barnes._

***

Even though he wore a crown now, Bucky kept his promise.

No-one ever hurt his Tony again.

No-one ever hurt his _people_ again. For Bucky wouldn’t sent his men into a battle he wouldn’t join himself. Which was all for the better because he’d grown into a warrior so fierce and feared, entire armies would flee in the mere mention of his name: _The Winter Soldier_.

**Author's Note:**

> Bucky didn’t loose his arm while with HYDRA. Neither did he have the name ‘The Winter Soldier’ he and Steve were just called ‘the Assets’ while under HYDRA’s control.   
> He was named ‘the Winter Soldier’ while fighting for Tony. He was first named ‘The Soldier of the West’ which evolved into ‘The Soldier of Winter’, because high up in the Western Mountains it was winter all year round. ‘The Soldier of Winter’ ultimately became ‘Winter’s Soldier’ and that became ‘The Winter Soldier’ because that was easier to pronounce than ‘Winter’s Soldier’.  
> Tony and Bucky didn’t just free their own land from HYDRA but the entire world in this Universe. The West elected Bucky as their king out of gratitude. That’s why he’s ‘King of the Western Mountains’.  
> The tradition against same-sex marriages is because the royals prefer babies born with ‘pure’ royal blood rather than having to adopt a child. For it would 'break' their royal bloodline. Medieval fantasy laws are difficult...


End file.
